Commercially available patterns used in the home for making clothing such as dresses and suits are conventionally available in a variety of sizes chosen to accomodate normal or average combinations of height, weight, musculature, bone structure and related factors. If the individual for whom a particular garment is to be made from a commercially available pattern has an unusual figure including one or more features such as markedly rounded shoulders, large bustline, one shoulder higher than the other, humped back and similar variations from the average figure, then either the commercially available pattern must be altered to account for such differences or the garment made from the commercially available pattern must be altered for the same purpose.
The prior art teaches numerous methods and apparatus for altering garment patterns to accomodate variations in an individual figure from the average figures for which the patterns are made. A difficulty with the prior art solutions is that while numerous methods have been derived for correcting a pattern for a particular figure variation, the correction for one particular variation may result in a need for correction to other portions of the pattern which, once corrected, may result in further need for correction to still other portions of the pattern, and so on. This considerably complicates the task facing the home sewer or tailor when confronted with an unusual figure to be fitted.
It is an object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus for altering garment patterns which inherently account for numerous figure variations on each individual and enable the home sewer or tailor to modify a particular pattern style prior to cutting any fabric with reasonable assurance that the fabric as cut will produce a garment of proper fit.
A further object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus for altering garment patterns which may be applied to a variety of garment styles to produce altered patterns fitted to the proportions of various individuals.
Another object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus for altering garment patterns such that the altered patterns will yield an essentially perfect fit in the neck, shoulder and armhole areas, as well as the correct bodice or trunk length of fitted garments having set in sleeves.